Even if the weather is changeable the increasing light levels have signalled the start of Spring and the blossom and early flowers are truly lovely even with a bite in the air. Already the tulips are shooting up despite the cold. So thanks to the extra light the first of the flowers and plants are ready including over wintered perennials, cold tolerant hardy annuals and biennials.
Flowers and plants can be picked up on Sunday morning at this week’s market. Also, orders of £15 or over can be delivered on Friday 13th & Saturday 14th within 5 miles of Oxford for no charge. Please message me: thedevelopingplot@gmail.com to pre-order for pick up or for delivery availability.
Sofacoma Market: March 15th from 10.00am to midday
Flowers for Mother’s Day on March 15th
At this time of year, the flowers and foliage grown by me locally using an organic approach are supplemented with flowers from other local and British growers. As well as jars and bunches, bespoke bouquets can be made too – just ask if you would like an alternative to the offer below. As a guide, each £15 bouquet will include at least 25 stems and often more.
Jam jars, pickle pots and bouquets will include a mix of flowers including: ranunculus, hellebores, delicately scented narcissi, anenomes in a range of colours, tulips as well as daffodils, fresh blossom and other Spring foliage.
Jam Jar Posies: £7.50
Pickle Jar Flowers: £10.00
Mixed Bouquets: £15, £20 & £25 all gift wrapped
Hardy Perennials & Foxgloves
These plants have been over wintered outside and are tough and ready to be planted out as long as the ground isn’t frozen. They are all magnets for pollinating insects and will return bigger and better each year. Foxgloves are biennials and they will flower and then self seed so, if they like your conditions they will come back and increase.
Knautia Melton Shades: a top favourite plant – it has waving wiry stems with truly lovely scabious pincushion flowers in a range of colours including claret burgundy, purple, soft dusky pink white and blue. Very long flowering and lovely threaded through a border, it is much loved by butterflies and bees. 13cm/1 litre pots £4.00; 2 litre pots £6.50
Eryngium Blue Glitter: another favourite which like knautia will flower this year. Covered in small blue thistles on branched electric blue stems, it adds height, beauty and lots of seasonal interest. Its flowers are loved by pollinators and its seeds provide Winter interest as well as food for birds. 13cm/1 litre pots £4.00; 2 litre pots £6.50
Foxglove Alba: loved by bees and pretty in a cottage style garden, foxgloves can be grown in shade and part shade where they shine out. They will generously self seed if given the right conditions. These healthy plants are ready to be planted out. 13cm pots £3.00
There will be other plants available at the market on Sunday.
Hardy Annuals
Larkspur
Although both these varieties look delicate they are both extremely healthy and produce flowers generously. They are one of the easiest flowers to grow and are extremely cold tolerant. They have been over wintered outside and are ready to be planted in the ground or large container. Plants can be spaced 9 inches apart in a sunny location and can grow up to 3 foot in ideal conditions. £1.50 a 7cm pot
Sweet Peas: £1.75 a 9cm pot
Beautiful climbing plants which need quite a bit of attention but are definitely worth it. Some of the varieties available are pictured below and there will be more varieties at the market.
All chosen for their heady scent, colour and reliability, these sweet peas are ready to be planted out and are hardy to -5; however, if the weather becomes extremely cold it would be a good idea to protect them with either a temporary covering of fleece or even newspaper.
If you would like to know what’s available each week, please sign up below:
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